


Poster Boy

by Amateum



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, He gets embarrassed too though don't worry, Humor, Identity Reveal, Little Shit!Chat Noir, Marinette Swears 2k17, Pre- The Gamer episode, Rated T for language, Reveal Fic, Sass, Snark, get-together, mostly because of chat, only because of chat, romcom-esque
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-14
Updated: 2017-04-14
Packaged: 2018-10-18 18:09:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10622313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amateum/pseuds/Amateum
Summary: Ladybug let out a relieved sigh and slumped against the wall surrounding the bed they had landed on. “That was close.” She looked over to where Chat was sat on the other side of the bed.He glanced around the darkened room, taking in the details. He loved having night vision. “How did you know where the key to the house was?” He asked, turning back to Ladybug.“Because…” An uncomfortable look crossed her face, followed by resignation. “Because this is my room, Chat.”“Really?!” He immediately perked up and peered over the edge of the bed to get a better look around. Unfortunately, her lack of night vision doesn’t stop Ladybug from finding his ear-the human one- and using it to yank him back to the top of the bed. “Chaton!”“Right. Secret identity. Sorry,” he said sheepishly. After a beat he said, “Hey, why do you have a collage of Adrien Agreste pictures?”





	

**Author's Note:**

> Note: Set Pre-The Gamer episode, meaning Adrien hasn't seen the inside of Marinette's room yet. (Cuz, ya know. Otherwise the plot won't work)
> 
> My inspiration for this story comes from this poster I saw: http://imagecache5d.allposters.com/watermarker/62-6257-C4R3100Z.jpg?ch=874&cw=687 and the thought that it would be the perfect gift from Ladybug to Chat Noir. Enjoy.

Chat dodged yet another bullet from the police officers who were chasing him and Ladybug across the rooftops of Paris in the middle of the night. He would have preferred if their persistence went into chasing criminals, but instead they had to be akumatized and chasing after the only two people in Paris who could un-zombify them. He sighed internally. Why couldn’t these akuma be more direct and just attack the heroes themselves instead of sending their brainwashed lackeys after them? He caught sight of a helicopter with a searchlight about half a mile ahead, reminding him that it’s not just these two officers who are after him and his Lady. No, this akuma decided to target the _entire Paris police force._ Sometimes, Chat really hated his job.

As the searchlight crept up on them, he dug deep, putting out another burst of speed. He managed it—barely. They’d been running for…was it two hours now? It seemed longer than that. No, it had been two hours since they’d found out that the akuma was halfway across Paris from where they were. Before that they had been searching for at least an hour. This latest akuma was subtler than the others, taking its time and quietly infiltrating the minds and bodies of people with authority before making its move. Smart. Beside him, Ladybug swore, snapping him out of his autopilot and making him take stock of the situation. The area looked familiar but he couldn’t see anything immediately wrong.

“Chat, we need to hide. Now.”

“Why?”

She pointed down at the street where an entire mob of uniformed people was converging. “Because the rest of the police just figured out where we are.”

Chat immediately paled. “Oh. Got any ideas?”

She sighed. “One. And I hate it.”

“Then choose something el-”

“Too late!” she grabbed Chat’s arm and moved him out of the helicopter spotlight just in time, the rotors deafening overhead. “If that thing sees us, we’re done for!” she shouted over the noise, “Follow me!” Softer, she added “and don’t make me regret this.”

Ladybug led him across two more rooftops, sticking to the shadows and crouching as to not be seen by those akumatized below, eventually landing stealthily on the upstairs patio of a house. Without hesitating, she picked up a plant pot and pulled out a concealed key, unlocking a hatch that lead inside the house. “Get in!” she whisper-shouted to Chat who had paused to stare. _How did she-_ now was not the time. He quickly dove through the hole, Ladybug diving through immediately after him, followed by a loud “click” of the hatch closing behind her.

The young superheroine let out a relieved sigh and slumped against the wall surrounding the bed they had landed on. “That was close.” She looked over to where Chat was sat on the other side of the bed.

He glanced around the darkened room, taking in the details. He loved having night vision. “How did you know where the key to the house was?” He asked, turning back to Ladybug.

“Because…” An uncomfortable look crossed her face, followed by resignation. “Because this is my room, Chat.”

“Really?!” He immediately perked up and peered over the edge of the bed to get a better look around. Unfortunately, her lack of night vision doesn’t stop Ladybug from finding his ear-the human one- and using it to yank him back to the top of the bed. “ _Chaton!_ ”

“Right. Secret identity. Sorry,” he said sheepishly. After a beat he said. “Hey, why do you have a collage of Adrien Agreste pictures?”

Ladybug froze. And then she did something he’d never heard her do before. She babbled.

“Well, you see, I’m interested in fashion-like any other Parisian, I mean who doesn’t care about fashion if they live in Paris, am I right? But I like the Agreste fashion line and most of the fashion shoots are modeled by Adrien himself and so it’s really not that I like Adrien- not that I dislike Adrien! He’s great! A great person! I mean- not that I know him in person, but-”

“Oh my God,” he interrupted. “You have a crush.”

“What?” she squeaked. “No I don’t!”

“You’re blushing! You totally have a crush on Adrien Agreste!” he laughed.

“No I don’t! I just admire his face and his clothes and the way he poses and….” She hid her face in her arms. “This is not helping my case,” she mumbled.

This only made him laugh harder.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, Kitty cat. I’m not the only one with an embarrassing crush,” she said looking pointedly at her partner.

His laughter subsided into soft chuckles and he replied “Yes, but _my_ crush is reciprocated!”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “You wish.” He opened his mouth to reply, ready to tell her _exactly how reciprocated it was,_ but before he could get a sound out, she interrupted. “C’mon, we’ve been resting long enough. Are you ready to get rid of this nuisance once and for all?”

He smiled a Cheshire cat grin back at her. “More than you know, My Lady.”

She opened the hatch and took a deep breath. “Let’s do this.”

 

 oooOOOooo

 

 

“Bien Joué!” Ladybug and Chat Noir fist-bumped as a purified akuma victim looked around, confused. Their Miraculouses beeped, signaling their temps de partir. It was time—when they’re about to detransform so neither of them have time to get embarrassed. Chat would tell her about his secret identity.

“Until we meet again, Ladybug,” he said, bowing down and kissing her hand. To be honest, he was still debating on whether or not to tell her. On one hand, she should know that the man of her dreams is standing right beside her, a willing date. On the other hand…this would be the best opportunity he’d ever get to tease her about it. After all these years of rejection and blatant pining, it turns out that the guy he’s been competing with was…himself. It’s simultaneously sad and hilarious. He could have fun with this. Plus, Ladybug _did_ say to keep their identities a secret.

Ladybug rolled her eyes but smiled. “Until next time, Chaton.”

Experimentally, Chat waited until she was about to throw her yo-yo and said “Have fun with your boyfriend!” causing Ladybug to throw the weapon wildly off target and whack it into the side of a building.

“Chat!” Ladybug turned around angrily, a light blush on her cheeks, to see Chat unsuccessfully trying to hide his laughter.

“Stupid cat,” she muttered before successfully throwing her yo-yo this time and swinging away.

 _Oh yeah,_ he thought, _I’m going to have fun with this._

 

 

OOOoooOOO

 

 

It began as light teasing before battles: “Got any new posters lately?” or “Do you enjoy decorating your room?” followed by a swift glare and a flick to the ears from Ladybug. Then it got less subtle.

“So, how is that Agreste kid doing?”

A glare.

 

“Heard any news from model-boy extraordinaire?”

“No, Chat.”

 

“Have you asked him out yet? You should ask him out”

“No, Chat!”

 

“This is a gorgeous view of Paris. Almost as gorgeous as your model boy.”

“Shut up, Chat.”

 

“Ah, how beautifully the stars are shining tonight. What perfect mood lighting for you and your crush’s first date.”

“With you chaperoning? No thank you.”

 

“Look, Bugaboo, I got a haircut! Aren’t I so handsome? Not quite as handsome as your Agreste, of course, but-”

“I will smack you.”

 

“I can’t patrol tonight, Chat, I have physics homework.”

“Ooh, you should ask model boy to help you, I bet he knows physics.”

“How do you even-you know what, nevermind.”

 

“Chat, what’s your ETA?” she asked over the communicator.

“Not sure,” Chat panted. She could only see his face and the tops of roofs as he ran across them. “I’m a few miles out but my staff keeps slipping on all this ice the akuma caused so I have to run instead. Normally, I would say about ten minutes, but now I can’t give an accurate estimation.” A pause. “You know who I think _would_ be able to give an accurate estima-” She cut the connection before he could finish. He grinned and put the rest of his energy into running.

 

“There are 779 sprout imps, 346 plant minions, 24 tree demons, and one angry oak akuma.” Ladybug muttered to herself. “The policemen can take about three sprouts each, a riot cop can take two plant minions, and three riot cops can take one tree demon. Two normal cops are the equivalent to one riot cop. If we ask the entire police force of 500 cops and 240 riot cops to help, how many left will we have to fight through to get to the akuma?” She wasn’t expecting an answer, but Chat decided to chip in anyway.

“I’m not sure, LB, but you know who I think would know? Adrien Agreste. I bet he has great mental math skills.”

“I swear to God, Chat, I will skin you alive.”

“Ah, but My Lady, then you will never hear my brilliant plan”

“You have a _brilliant_ plan?” She asked, skeptically.

“There’s more than one way to skin a cat, after all,” he grinned impishly.

She glanced at him, smiling a little despite herself. “What’s your plan?”

He walked over to the edge of the roof they were standing on and gestured grandly to the large tree akuma in the distance currently wreaking havoc in the city. “Instead of getting the police involved, we can simply hop across the rooftops and take down the akuma at its source.”

“...I blame you for my lack of common sense.”

“Why would I cause that?”

“Because you’re driving me crazy.”

“Why Ladybug,” he grinned innocently, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Let’s just go defeat this akuma,” she sighed.

“You’re right. If this akuma thinks it’ll get our miraculous, it’s barking up the wrong tree.”

The last thing Chat heard before he leapt off the roof was a soft “Why me?”

 

One day, instead of glaring at him whenever he mentioned his alter-ego, Ladybug took it all in stride. Instead of flicking his ear after waxing poetic about the properties of “model boy’s” hair in the sunshine, she nodded good-humoredly. He even asked if she got any new “pictures for the shrine” lately. Instead of the expected rebuff, she just grinned. Evilly.

Something was up.

Unfortunately, he didn’t have much time to think about it over the akuma fight.

 

 

000ooo000

 

“Chat, wait!” Ladybug called after the fight. He paused mid-step.

“Yes?”

She ran over to him. “Can you wait here for a second? I have something for you,” she smirked.

He perked up. Internally, he was suspicious, but externally didn’t show it. “A gift? For me? You shouldn’t have, Bugaboo.”

“Oh, _yes_ I did. Wait here.” She swung off the roof, disappearing with dangerous grin.

 _This cannot end well_ , he thought. But before he could lose his nerve and escape whatever wrath Ladybug decided to bring down upon him, she returned, holding a…scroll?

 

“…it’s not going to bite you,” she said after he still hadn’t taken it from her outstretched hand for 30 seconds. “It’s just a gift, kitty. Take it.” She shook it a little in front of his face.

“Alright, alright,” he snatched it away from where it was threatening to give him a paper cut on the nose and stared at it. It wasn’t made of paper like a normal scroll, more like plastic or laminated cardstock paper. He warily looked back up at his partner. “You know I didn’t really mean all of those jokes, right? It was just some lighthearted teasing.”

“It’s just a gift, Chat.”

“Right, right…because I can stop now; I feel like I’ve made my point.”

“Just open it, you scaredy-chat.”

He held up a placating hand. “Right yeah.” He paused over where the tape was keeping the scroll tightly wound. “…this isn’t going to kill me, is it?”

“Chat!”

“Okay! I’ll open it!” Holding the gift as far away from his body as humanly possible, he stuck out a claw, flinching as the tape cut it open, to reveal….

A poster.

Ladybug had gotten him a poster.

He pulled back his arms to look at it properly. At the top it said “The Domestic Cat and its Moods.” Underneath it had pictures of a black cat striking different poses with their descriptions underneath. It was…adorable. And _certainly_ not what he had expected after an entire month of teasing.

“I saw it in a store and it made me think of you,” Ladybug cut into his thoughts and he looked up at her eager face. “Especially the ‘flattery’ one.” She pointed to it. He looked down at the cat leaning over with an intent look on its face, tail bent in the air like it was wrapped around a pretty girl. He had to admit, there was a striking similarity. He looked back up at her.

“So,” she said, a self-satisfied grin spread across her face, “what do you think?”

He paused and smirked.  “I don’t know, my Lady,” he held the poster up next to face and pasted on a cheesy grin. “How about you tell me how I’m fe _line_?”

Ladybug’s face dropped from “little shit and I know it” to “are you kidding me right now” in the span of a second.

He lowered the poster then put a hand on her shoulder. “If this is the best rebuttal you can come up with to all of my jokes, then you are clearly too precious for this world and I must take pity on you and cease all of my teasing here and now.”

“Wha-but-but it’s a perfect rebuttal! I’m comparing you to a pet cat! A rambunctious tom!”

“Too precious.”

“Oh, fuck you!”

He put a hand to his heart. “Even her swearing is adorable.”

She pulled out her yo-yo. “Goodbye, Chat Noir. I’m never speaking to you again.”

“I’ll cherish it forever! I’ll put it right in front of my bed so it’s the first thing I see in the morning and the last thing I see at night!”

“I genuinely hate you right now.”

“I love you too, Bugaboo!” was the last thing Ladybug heard before she swung into the night.

 

 

 oooOOOooo

 

 

 

Alya slammed her head into the desk and groaned into the wood after the bell rang for the end of classes. “I can’t believe Mme. Mendeleev assigned _another_ project over the weekend. This is the third time in a row!”

“Maybe this’ll be the last one,” Marinette said in a soothing tone.

“Yeah,” chirped Nino. “Third time’s the charm, right?” The disbelief on his face did nothing to calm Alya, who just groaned for the second time.

“I know,” said Marinette, “We can all work on the project right now and get it over with so we have the rest of the weekend free.” 

Alya rolled her head over to face her friend. “Only if it’s at your house where there’s lots of chocolate.”

Marinette chuckled. “Sure. Nino, you in?”

“Sure.”

“A-adrien? Are you-are you free right now? To join the study group, that is? If you want! You don’t have to if you don’t want to!”

Adrien, who had resigned himself to another lonely weekend, lit up. “I’d love to. I have a modeling gig tomorrow so I should get a head start on my homework anyway.”

“Great!” Marinette said a bit more high-pitched than normal.

Alya coughed to hide her laughter.

Giving Alya a glare, Marinette continued, “Let me just call my parents to let them know we’re coming.”

“Actually,” Alya forestalled Marinette’s phone call with a hand on her arm, “Maybe you could go ahead of us and tell them yourself while we grab some research books from the library. It’ll give you time to,” she paused, giving her friend a significant look, “clean up your room a bit.”

Marinette frowned. “What do you mean? I normally keep it pretty cle-oh. OH.” Her eyes widened. “YES! I NEED TO CLEAN MY ROOM SO YOU THREE CAN CATCH UP WITH ME LATER BYE!” She threw her book in her bag and ran out of the classroom.

“What…was that?” asked Nino.

Alya glanced at him. “I’ll tell you later. Let’s grab our books.”

 

 

000ooo000

 

 

Roughly 45 minutes had passed since Marinette had scrambled out of school to clean her room. Adrien hoped that was enough time. He’s never had to clean his room himself, so he didn’t know how long these things normally took.

Mrs. Dupain-Cheng greeted them warmly at the door then directed them to the staircase leading to her daughter’s room, saying that she’d already brought up snacks for them so they can head straight up.

Alya led the way, knocking, and saying in what he thought was a louder voice than necessary “Marinette! Nino, ADRIEN, and I are here! Is your room clean?!”

The hatch to her room opened to reveal their slightly flustered classmate. “Yes! Come on in!”

Adrien followed Alya and Nino up into her room. He’d always wondered what his classmate’s room looked like. He didn’t know her too well so he could only guess how she’d decorate her space. He stepped onto carpet, closing the hatch behind him, looked up, and stopped dead in his tracks.

_This is Ladybug’s room._

He glanced around. No. No way. It had been dark and he’d only gotten a quick look and…nope, there was no mistaking the furniture, layout, and aesthetic he’d seen. This was most definitely his Lady’s room-minus the posters of himself. _So_ that’s _what she was “cleaning up.”_

“Adrien? What’s wrong?”

The sound of Alya’s voice made him snap out of his thoughts and realize he’d been standing there, frozen in his thoughts. “Uhh...” _everything. “_ Nothing. Say, Marinette. This is your room, right?”

“…yes?”

“No one else lives here?”

“…no?”

“So there is not anyone else currently occupying this same area as you. You are in sole possession of this space?”

“What is your problem, Adrien?” Alya said. “This is Marinette’s room and no one else’s. That’s it.”

And now everyone was staring at him weirdly. Great. But it was worth it, because he knew. He _knew._

“I’m sorry, I just wanted to make sure it was yours so I could compliment you on the décor, Marinette,” he lied smoothly. “I was thinking, though, you know what would look good in here?”

“Wha-what?”

“Pictures,” he smiled. “This room would look _miraculous_ with some pictures. Of things relevant to your interests, of course. Maybe sewing or fashion, or…your favorite model to show off that fashion.”

Marinette’s eyes widened. “F-favorite model? Why would you think I have pictures of a model in my room? Did someone tell you-” Alya interrupted by shoving a croissant into her friend’s open mouth.

“She’ll take it into consideration,” Alya smiled sweetly, completely ignoring the death glare Marinette gave her. The heat of the look was somewhat lessened, however, by the large pastry awkwardly crammed in her mouth.

“Gee, Alya,” said Adrien, “that was pretty mean. I’ll be sure not to _cross_ oint you in the future.” He grinned his best Chat Noir I-just-made-a-hilarious-pun smirk.  

Nino and Alya groaned but Marinette choked on her pastry, which caused Alya to clap her on the back until she recovered.

“Wow, Mari. Are you okay? I donut believe you were almost toast!”

For the first time ever, Marinette Dupain-Cheng glared at Adrien Agreste. “Who are you, Chat Noir?”

He only grinned in response. _There’s my Lady._

 

 

 oooOOOooo

 

 

 

Alya was systematically bonking her head onto the table while Marinette rubbed her back, making soothing noises, when Adrien and Nino sat down with them.

“Four. Group. Projects. In. Four. Weeks. Kill. Me. Now.” Said Alya, one word accompanying each head bonk.

Seeing an opportunity, Adrien quickly volunteered his place for the study session.  
“…and my dad’s away for the week so we can order pizza,” he added at his friend’s uncertain looks.

“Sold!” Said Nino.

Alya peered up from the table, forehead lightly red from her ministrations. “Only if we can get more than one pizza so I don’t have to share with Mr. Extra Anchovies over there,” she said nodding her head towards Nino.

“Hey, I resent that!”

“What about you, Marinette!” he loudly interrupted. before the two could start a full-out bickering session.

“YES- I mean yes. Yes please that would be nice,” she chuckled nervously, a gorgeous flush making its way across her face.

He grinned in response. “Perfect. That’s…that’s perfect…” he trailed off, staring at her. Perfect. She was practically perfect, wasn’t she? Why hadn’t he seen her earlier? Why hadn’t he _seen_ her? How had it taken him finding out about her secret identity to notice her? She was adorable! And not only that, but she was Ladybug. His Lady!  
He smiled softly. And soon he would know that he was her kitty. Then, with no more secrets keeping them apart, they could finally be together.  
What would their wedding look like? Even more important, what would their _children_ look like?  Would they take after their mom or dad more? Most likely their mom since dark hair is genetically stronger and-

“-thing on my face?“

He blinked and focused back onto Marinette’s, who was smiling nervously. “What?”

“Is-is there something on my face?” She asked, blushing the same shade as her superheroine costume. At his confused look, she fidgeted with the side of her shirt and said, “you were staring at me.”

Adrien paused, mouth open. _Why must I be so socially awkward at the worst of times? Okay think, think she’s staring at me, what should I say?_ “I was just thinking about what cute babies we’d make?”

_NOT THAT. NOT THAT AT ALL. ABORT. ABORT._

Judging by the looks his friends were currently sending his way, they had similar thoughts.

“I MEAN- I MEAN TO SAY I was uh…I mean to say I was…” he looked at some point in the distance. “Hey, is that the Gorilla? I better head home before you guys to clean up my room a bit see you guys back at my house!” He blurted out and fast-walked away from a confused Alya, a smug Nino, and an absolutely gob smacked Marinette.

The last thing he heard before being completely out of earshot was:  
“I thought he had maids to clean up after him?”  
“…and it’s lunch break.”

 

 

 oooOOOooo

 

 

 

 

 Adrien sat in his room, impatiently bouncing his leg while waiting for his friends to show up for the study session. The pizzas, sodas, and other assorted snacks were laid out, his dad was gone, and—he checked for the umpteenth time that day—the poster that Ladybug had given him was placed directly in the line of sight of anyone walking in. Everything was perfect. Now he just needed to not embarrass himself when Marinette showed up.

Easier said than done.

He huffed out a breath of bitter laughter at the thought of his earlier stunt. _“Oh, I was just thinking about what our babies would look like!”_ he said mockingly. “You memorized the periodic table in an hour and have a 3.7 GPA, but to talk to a girl? Apparently impossible. Shut up, Plagg,” he grumbled to the small lump quivering from laughter in his jacket.

“I didn’t say anything,” the lump said innocently.

Before Adrien could reply, the doorbell rang.

_They’re here._

_She’s here._

_Oh God._

He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and put on his best model face.   _I can do this. I am an Agreste. I was born from a long generation of powerful and influential men. I am calm. I am composure. I am Chat Noir, superhero and protector of Paris. I am pure feline grace and charm. I can talk to a girl._ He stood up, walked over to door and down the hall.

Then promptly ran to the front door because fuck composure. The love of his life was about to find out about his secret identity and he _couldn’t wait._

Alya, Nino, and Marinette saw the front doors to the Agreste mansion open to reveal a red-faced and giddy looking Adrien.  “Come on in!” he said, swinging open the doors, perhaps a little too enthusiastically. “I’ve been waiting for hours!”

“Yeah dude,” says Nino, walking in behind the two girls, “because you left halfway through the school day.”

_Goddammit, Nino. Way to set the mood._

“So it’s this way to my room,” he said, deliberately ignoring what his friend said. “Follow me.”

“Yeah, why on earth did you think The Gorilla was picking you up during lunch break?” Alya asked, trailing behind Adrien. “Unless, of course, you wanted to leave school for some reason.”

_Not helping, Alya!_

“This was my grandfather,” Adrien desperately pointed out a painting in the hallway on the way to his room. The only one who made a token effort to seem like she cared was Marinette, bless her soul. The blush on her cheeks and deliberate way she looked at him but never actually looked at him told Adrien that she was just as uncomfortable with the conversation as he was.

“Maybe it was something you said?” Alya continued, unhelpfully.

“Maybe it was the way he said it?” Nino suggested, equally as unhelpful.

“Alright!” Adrien stopped and whipped around to face Alya and Nino. “I told my crush that I liked her in the most embarrassing way possible and then made a shitty excuse to leave right after! I admit it! Are you happy?”  

Alya and Nino stood silently stunned. Marinette was positively gaping. “…crush?” she let out in an almost silent squeak.

_She didn’t realize. Of course she didn’t. But I’ve just told her. Of course I did._

“Uh…” he looked around for a distraction, and noticed that they had made it to his room. “This is my room,” he pointed at the door. “We should study.” He stood there in silence for another few beats when no one answered before opening the door for the others.

_Why did I think that this was a good idea, this was a terrible idea, It was all because of that stupid comment at school and now the atmosphere’s too awkward for the reveal to go smoothly and why would she even want to be with me after that, anyway? I should wait until they’re distracted by work, then slip behind them and take down the-_

“Hey, Adrien, is that a new poster?”

 _God_ dammit _, Nino._

While marinating in his angst-fest outside the door, Adrien had failed to dispel the increasingly uncomfortable atmosphere that continued to grow in the silence of the group as they took in the grandeur of the room and searched about for a new topic of discussion. ~~~~

(Un)fortunately, Nino had found one.

 _I give up,_ Adrien thought, walking into the room. _This whole thing started disastrously, it might as well end with my complete and utter humiliation as the love of my life rejects me inside and outside the suit._

“Yeah,” he said in a resigned tone, “a friend gave it to me.” Deliberately looking over to Marinette, he added, “it was an inside joke, in retaliation for how much I teased her about the embarrassing posters on the wall of her bedroom.” At this, Marinette looked up at him, a small crinkle in her brows. “She thought I could use an embarrassing poster of my own,” he continued. Finally, he looked back at Nino. “It was kind of an inside joke that ended up backfiring on her.”

He heard an intake of breath beside him.

Wincing in anticipation of her to storm out, make a fuss, demand a better partner, or—worst of all—stare at him with disappointment in those beautiful blue eyes of hers, he was surprised to hear…nothing.

Shyly, he turned her way. She was staring at him, looking as if someone had just told her that the sky was purple.

“That’s funny,” said Alya, apparently oblivious of her best friend’s world being turned upside-down at that very moment. “Why would someone think a cat poster is embarrassing?”

“Maybe they knew you had an embarrassing obsession with cats?” teased Nino.

Just then, Marinette’s face…changed. She shook her head, looked down, paused, and then looked up at him again, a small smile growing on her face. It was as if she had accepted that the sky was purple and was ready to make fun of those who still thought it was blue. “Or maybe it’s because he acts like a stray Tomcat.”

“What do you mean?” asked Alya.

“A lonely kitty is dropped off in the big bad world that is school, only to be adopted by a family, ergo, us? Not to mention how we always feed him whenever he visits. Sounds like a stray to me.”

Adrien, whose smile had grown wider as she teased him, said “Meowch! I resent that!”

“See? He even uses awful cat puns.”

“My puns are pawsitively purrfect, Mari.”

“I think you need to be whiskered away to pun rehab.”

“What do you want from me, dog puns? Because I have a bone to pick with them.”

She stepped closer. “Maybe a haiku then? To friend Adrien, please stop your endless cat puns. Ladybug is sad.”

He stepped closer in turn. “Ladybug loves cats. Ladybug loves Chat’s cat puns. You are who is sad.”

She raised an unimpressed eyebrow up at him. “That makes no sense.”

He leaned down to her “well that wasn’t a haiku.”

She leaned closer. “You couldn’t make a decent haiku if your life depended on it.”

“Maybe that’s why I stick to puns,” he murmured, breath ghosting over her lips.

“Then maybe you should do something else with that tongue of yours.”

“AH-HEM!” Nino coughed in a deliberately loud and fake way, causing the two to spring apart. “As much as I love your verbal foreplay, we should really work on this project now.”

Adrien and Marinette both immediately started blushing and stammering.

“Right, I’ll get the-”

“I’ll start doing the-”

They paused when they realized what they were doing, then glanced at each other, only to look away shyly.

Nino stepped back to where Alya stood, staring with rapt attention.

“Y-you decide who does what,” Adrien was saying quietly. “You’re good at that.”

Marinette grew a pleased look on her face at this and started planning what tasks go to whom, all while the blond-haired boy listened, completely spellbound, as if the instructions depended on the safety of Paris itself.

“God, they’re like a cheesy romance novel,” Nino whispered to Alya. “Do you understand what just happened?”

“No,” she replied equally as quiet, still studying the two intensely. “But I _love it._ Marinette’s been pining over Adrien for years now.”

“I’d had a feeling that Adrien felt the same way. This just confirms it. I bet they would have kissed if I hadn’t stopped them.”

“Oh yeah,” said Alya, “that reminds me,” and smacked him.

 “OW!” Nino rubbed his arm. “What was that for?!”

“Do you know how long I have been waiting for Marinette to kiss the guy of her dreams? She was that close,” she held up two fingers, “to achieving it, but you just _had_ to interrupt them.”

“Well excuse me if I’m uncomfortable watching my two friends make out while I stand awkwardly in the background! Especially if I’m not kissing anyone myself,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows at the last part.

Alya rolled her eyes. “Just because two of our friend group have found love, doesn’t mean that the remaining opposite-sex pair have to date.”

“But it would be oh-so convenient.”

“Not today, Bubbles.”

Nino looked into the distance, a dramatically pained expression on his face. “One day, my prince will come.”

 

Five minutes later Marinette and Adrien found their friends bent over in laughter.

“Having fun there?” Adrien Asked wryly.

Nino straightened up and asked, “Are you two, aha, are you two done flirting now?”

“Flirting? We were creating a very detailed and organized plan on how to attack this project. If anyone was flirting, it was you two.”

“What were you two laughing about, anyway?” Asked Marinette.

Nino and Alya looked at each other. Alya looked back them and said, “Snow White.” Nino snorted.

“Well if you were talking about Snow White,” said Adrien, “you looked pretty Dopey doing it.”

All three friends groaned.

“Though surprisingly Happy,” Adrien continued.

For the second time ever, Marinette Dupain-Chang glared at Adrien Agreste. “Really?”

He looked back at her, grinning. “Oh come on, Marinette. No need to be so…Grumpy.”

 

Needless to say, not much work got done that night.

 

 

 oooOOOooo

 

 

Marinette cornered Adrien the moment Nino and Alya left. Literally cornered him. Against a wall. She was right in his face. “So you figure out my secret identity, but instead of, oh I don’t know _telling me_ , you decide that the better way to go about things is to tell me via poster.”

“Well when you put it like that-”

 _“Right in front of our friends who are unaware of our alter egos._ ”

He shuffled nervously, weary of the dangerous gleam in her eye. Well, shuffled as much as he could whilst being almost literally pinned to the side of his house. “W-well you see. I wanted to give you an out. I know that you didn’t want us to know each other’s identities so if you didn’t want to acknowledge it, you didn’t have to and we would-”

She interrupted him with a kiss.

“You stupid cat.”

He grinned. “But you love me.” He said it jokingly, as a throwaway line. But there was still a hint of hope there, an underlying question.

She smiles softly up at him. “I do.”

 

-fin-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to point out that my editor, Libertarian_Firelord, made no less than eight puns during this entire writing/editing process. Please shame him publicly. (but then I wrote all of those puns in the story plus more during editing so what does that say about me). All joking aside, he is a wonderful editor and this fic (and all my others, for that matter) would be significantly less coherent without him.
> 
> Alright, sappy stuff done with. 
> 
> It's been mentioned in previous comments, but in between our back and forth editing, my editor and I tend to sass each other. A lot. So he had the wonderful idea to post a few samples to the internet. If that sounds like something you'd be interested in, please proceed. I'll also throw in some of the puns he made so you can see what I have to deal with.
> 
> L: Libertarian_Firelord (my editor)  
> A: Amateum (Me)
> 
> L: But on the other hand, Adrien is just trying to set up a pun, sooo…you’d butter think of something else to get out of this jam. A: I would argue semantics here, but I’ll ignore it because that was a fantastic pun and because I thought of a better line for Adrien anyway. What think you? L: I’m flattered that you think my pun was fantastic. Dough I figured it was the yeast I could do—I had to rise to the occasion. But the change is good too)
> 
> Chat dodged yet another bullet (L: ok but akuma don’t usually have deadly force…? A: I know, but they’re police officers, so what else would they fire? IDK really what else they’d attack with. Any ideas? L: They’re French cops-It’s simple: baguettes. It’s a new concept the French are trying. Instead of deadly force, it’s breadly force!)
> 
> “Hey, Adrien, is that a new poster?”  
> Goddammit, Nino.  
> While marinating (L: MARI-nating? Sorry. *Throws self out window* A:*catches you so I can throw you out the window myself* L: It’s a good dynamic we have. 
> 
> “Four. Group. Projects. In. Four. Weeks. Kill. Me. [Now.]” (A: Why did you add the now? L: I said this exact phrase many times in college—the addition of “now” seemed more natural. Not kill me later, not kill me tomorrow. Kill me right mother fucking now. Also, it gives Alya’s statement a rhythm to go with her headbonking: put a slightly longer pause between “projects” and “in,” and “weeks” and “kill.” It’d sound something more like “Four, group, projects. In, four, weeks. Kill, me, now. Three sets of three. Rhythm achieved. Poetry. A: Because my fan fiction about two fictional superhero teenagers snarking at each other needs to be poetic. L: Don’t sass me)
> 
> “What about you, Marinette!” he loudly [cut in] (L: find something other than “cut in.” please. For the love of camembert. Do it A: oh shut it. have you even ever tried camembert? L: I have. It goes pretty well with red wine, tbh. Unlike you, I’m actually cultured. A:Oh please, you’re about as cultured as Velveeta cheese L: I’VE STUDIED THREE LANGUAGES BESIDES MY OWN, HAVE BEEN TO EUROPE MULTIPLE TIMES, PLAY INSTRUMENTS, HAVE A BASIC KNOWLEDGE OF HOW TO PAIR WINE WITH FOOD [simple, really: red meat? Red wine. Everything else? White. After dinner? Port or Riesling/other Rhine wine], AND CAN MAKE DAMN GOOD SPAGHETTI SAUCE. I’M SO CULTURED, I PRACTICALLY AM A CULTURE. A: Remind me never to vacation there.
> 
> “Not today, Bubbles.” L: Excellent nickname A: I think I’ll use it in the future. L: Use it on me and I’ll drop a live squid on your head. A: I meant for Nino, but now I’m wondering where you’d find and transport a live squid to be able to drop it on my head. L: Don’t push me—I have my ways.
> 
> +Bonus pun by me:  
> L: Also. TENSES HOLY FUCKING SHIT AMATEUM PAY FUCKING ATTENTION TO YOUR BUDDHA DAMNED TENSES FFS. A: No need to be so /tense/, Firelord. That was a pretty /passive/ aggressive comment to make; not everything has to be /perfect/, you know. (get it? Tense puns.) L: (Holy fuck I can’t even be mad at those. 10/10 well fucking played 3good5me.)


End file.
